Definitions

Articulation Agreements

The purpose of an articulation agreement is to allow students to complete an associate degree program and transfer to a related bachelor’s degree program with a minimum loss of credit and duplication of coursework. Many Eastern Michigan University programs have articulation agreements with community college programs. Most of them use the MACRAO agreement to meet general education requirements at EMU. Every articulation agreement includes an articulation agreement guide, which lays out the specific courses to take in order to complete both the associate degree and bachelor's degree programs. The guide also lists other types of requirements and provides information about who to contact at EMU and the Community College. Students should meet with a program advisor early in their studies.

Transfer Guides

Transfer guides list the EMU courses and equivalent community college courses that satisfy some of the requirements of specific majors or programs at EMU. Students who want to complete an associate degree will need to consult their community college catalog for community college program requirements.

MACRAO stands for the Michigan Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers. It is an organization made up of professionals in these areas from institutions of higher education throughout the state of Michigan. Its mission is “to provide for an exchange of information concerning issues of interest to its members and to contribute to the advancement of education in Michigan.” The organization provides support for the Michigan Transfer Agreement (MTA).

Eastern Michigan University is a signatory of the MACRAO agreement. This agreement facilitates the transfer of general education credit from Michigan community colleges to baccalaureate colleges and universities. The MACRAO agreement was replaced by the Michigan Transfer Agreement (MTA) in September 2014. Students whose first enrollment in college is in fall 2014 or later will use the MTA Agreement. Students who started college before fall 2014 have until August 2019 to submit their transcripts to their community college for a MACRAO audit. For more information about using the MACRAO Agreement at EMU go to our MACRAO webpage.

The Michigan Transfer Agreement (MTA) was mandated by the Michigan Legislature in Fall 2014 to replace the MACRAO agreement. The MTA allows for the transfer of 30 credits of core general education courses from a Michigan community college to a Michigan baccalaureate college or university. Students may complete the MTA as part of an associate’s degree or as a stand-alone package. MTA courses are approved by the community college. Lists of courses approved for the MTA by community colleges are available at this link. For more information about using the MTA at EMU go to our MTA webpage.

Michigan Transfer Agreement Transfer Guides

MTA Transfer Guides list community college courses and the equivalent EMU courses that can be used to satisfy the MTA requirements. These guides are available on the EMU Transfer Information website. Students should obtain the requirements for their intended major before selecting courses from the guide, since some courses may be double-counted to meet both an MTA requirement and a major requirement. Students should meet with a program advisor to select courses. Community colleges are required to provide a listing of courses that satisfy the MTA at their institution. The MACRAO Organization's website provides a list of links to community colleges' MTA information.

The Michigan Transfer Network is a centralized, web-based system that allows students to search course equivalencies among all Michigan colleges and universities. The site is sponsored by the Michigan Association of Collegiate Registrars & Admissions Officers (MACRAO) and generously supported by Michigan State University (MSU).